Significant

Wednesday, December 14, 2016

The United States solar industry shattered all records this past quarter, installing a massive 4.1 gigawatts (GW) at an average of 2 megawatts (MW) of solar PV installed per hour through the quarter.Even more impressive is the forecast that says the 4th quarter will be even higher.GTM Research in collaboration with the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) published their Q4 2016 U.S. Solar Market Insight report, which reported 4,143 MW of solar PV was installed in the United States during the 3rd quarter at a rate of 1 MW every 32 minutes — a pace which has only increased in the 4th quarter. Compared to previous quarters, that means the 3rd quarter increased solar installation by 99% over the 2nd quarter of 2016, and 191% over the 3rd quarter of 2015.Even more impressively, over the first 9 months of the year, solar accounted for 39% of all new electric generating capacity brought online in the US, second only to natural gas....The country’s non-residential segment posted its second-largest quarter ever, installing 375 MW in the quarter, growing 15% over the previous quarter and 37% year over year. Meanwhile, the residential solar segment continued to experience a slowdown, growing only 2% in the 3rd quarter, year over year, and actually falling 10% on the 2nd quarter.Read more at US Solar Market Experiences Record Quarter, Installing 2 Megawatts Per Hour!